天 tiān — sky, heaven · English

天

tiān

sky, heaven

At a glance · 天

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Evolution of the glyph

Five stages, from a sketch of the real object to regular script — tap a stage, drag the timeline, or play the animation.

Object sketchBefore writing · drawing what was seen
Oracle boneShang dynasty · c. 1300–1046 BCE
Seal scriptQin dynasty · 221–206 BCE
Clerical scriptHan dynasty · 206 BCE–220 CE
Regular scriptWei–Jin to Tang · c. 3rd–9th century CE

Object sketchBefore writing · drawing what was seenOracle boneShang dynasty · c. 1300–1046 BCESeal scriptQin dynasty · 221–206 BCEClerical scriptHan dynasty · 206 BCE–220 CERegular scriptWei–Jin to Tang · c. 3rd–9th century CE

天字甲骨文像人形之上有一横，指示头顶上方的天空；金文、小篆承之，由『大』（人）与『一』（上）组合，会意为人之上的苍穹。隶变后写作『天』，楷体沿用至今。

What the sketch shows

Shuowen Jiezi

他前切。顚也。至高無上，从一、大。。

— 《说文解字》

Origins & notes

天本义为头顶、天空，后引申为自然界的主宰与至高无上的天帝。

Structure

从结构看，天为会意字，从一从大，一指示上方，大像正面人形，合指人头顶之上的天空。

At a glance

Pinyintiān

Radical大

Strokes4

UnicodeU+5929

Character type会意

Theme天文

Six languages, one character

Each page offers hreflang versions; switching language keeps the glyphs and meanings aligned.

English sky, heaven Tian originally depicted the sky above the human head; it means sky, heaven, and the supreme celestial ruler.

Français ciel, ciel Tian désigne à l'origine le ciel au-dessus de la tête humaine; il signifie le ciel, le paradis et le souverain céleste suprême.

Español cielo, cielo Tian representaba originalmente el cielo sobre la cabeza humana; significa cielo, paraíso y el gobernante celestial supremo.

العربية السماء، السماء كانت تياني تشير في الأصل إلى السماء فوق رأس الإنسان؛ وتعني السماء والجنة والحاكم السماوي الأعلى.

Русский небо, небеса Тянь изначально изображал небо над головой человека; означает небо, рай и верховного небесного правителя.

Common words

天空tiān kōngsky
天气tiān qìweather
天下tiān xiàthe world

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